Hemera- Goddess of the Day

As my project seems to be evolving into being more about light and intangible powers rather than about the night sky, I decided to research the Greek goddess Hemera. Hemera is a primordial deity - one of the first goddesses born from the void of Chaos. Unfortunately, Hemera wasn't a very prominent figure in Greek mythology at all, often being overlooked or even merged with the presence of Eos. As such, there are very little tales of her. She is mentioned in Hesiod's Theogony where it's mentioned that Hemera lives with her mother, Nyx, in the underworld. However, it's not quite together as one is always out;

Hesiod, Theogony 744 ff :

"[At the ends of the earth, where lie the roots of earth, sea, Tartaros (Tartarus) :] There stands the awful home of murky Nyx wrapped in dark clouds. In front of it [Atlas] the son of Iapetos stands immovably upholding the wide heaven upon his head and unwearying hands, where Nyx (Night) and Hemera (Day) draw near and greet one another as they pass the great threshold of bronze : and while the one is about to go down into the house, the other comes out at the door. And the house never holds them both within; but always one is without the house passing over the earth, while the other stays at home and waits until the time for her journeying come; and the one holds all-seeing light (phaos) for them on earth."

Family;

Siblings; 

• Aether, (Light & Heavenly Father)
• Hypnos, (sleep)
• Thanatos, (non-violent death)
• Oizys, (misery, grief, anxiety, depression)
• Momus, (satire and mockery)
• Apate, (deceit)
• Clotho, Lachesis & Atropos, (the three fates)
• Oneiroi, (dark winged spirits)
• Eris (according to Hesiod), (chaos, strife and discord)
• Furies (variant accounts), 
• Moros (doom)

Husband;

• Aether

Children;

• Ouranos (according to Hyginus) (primordial god of the sky)
• Gaia (according to Hyginus) (Earth)
• Thalassa (according to Hyginus and Hesiod) (Spirit of the sea)

Her family seems to have a lot of negativity in regards to what they rule, however she and her brother/husband seem to be much more positive deities. 

Appearance:

There isn't much art or information on the appearance of Hemera, making it difficult to use multiple sources to understand how she is 'supposed' to come across.

William-Adolphe Bouguereau, Day (1881)

This is one of the only paintings that I could find of Hemera. It's not very well known, however it could become very influential to my work as it is not often she is painted. The painting is typical of the work by Bouguereau, who often emphasised on the female body within his work, and also used classical themes and then painted them in a modern way with his own interpretation; not entirely unlike what I am doing with my project. This oil on canvas painting is one of femininity and elegance, shown by the clean pastel tones, and the dusty pink of the shawl that wraps around the goddess. The branches in her hands hold berries that she uses to feed the birds- an action that shows generosity and trustworthiness. I think what I love about this painting, however, is the smile that is on Hemera's face. All too often these goddesses are presented as having a blank or stern look upon their faces, however, within Bouguereau's painting, Hemera smiles up at the birds and it feels honest. It gives the image such a positive feeling, much as a nice, sunny day gives us. She is well lit, the whole image feels very bright - this is because she is the personification of the day. There are no harsh shadows or contrast areas, which as a result makes the image as a whole feel like a breath of fresh air.
Bouguereau has depicted his image of the perfect woman, with her pale and smooth, perky breasts and all body hair removed. The image feels very natural because of the landscape behind her, the inclusion of the branches and the birds, as well as her being in her natural, bare state. He has also showed his skill and knowledge of not only the female body, but his skill in realism painting as well - which this and his academic paintings are what he was known for. The textures in the shawl around Hemera,in the leaves and the sky and skin are evidence of this. The realistic aspect helps the image come to life, helping this feeling of escapism when we look at her.

The Chariot of Eos-Hemera, Attributed to the Sappho Painter (500 BC)

This one another one of the very few visual depictions that I could find of Hemera. This archaic period Lekythos pot depicts Eos-Hemera, a merging of both Eos (dawn) and Hemera (day). She is being pulled by her horse-drawn carriage and is surrounded by this beautiful stream of light and darkness, almost like a sheer cloth often seen in paintings of goddesses that came much later.
Unfortunately, the appearance of Hemera here isn't much to go on. We can see she has her hair up and has a headpiece on, but her body is either hidden or morphed into this stream of light. The horses and chariot can tell us that she is well thought of, and perhaps in motion of bringing across the day to the sky. The stream of light and darkness could tell us that she is not only the goddess of the day, but the personification or being of the day.

Overall, Hemera is a really difficult goddess to portray. I now have the choice of just portraying Eos as planned or attempt to use  Bouguereau's painting as heavy inspiration. 

I think that I will actually simply choose to leave Hemera, despite her deity being very relevant to my work, as I already have Eos who she is strongly associated with, and gives me better and more unique opportunities stylistically.